Clearlingo Editing and Proofreading
  • Home
  • Editing Services
    • Business Editing and Proofreading
    • Plain Language Editing
    • Book Editing
    • Localisation
    • Human touch editing
  • Blog
  • About
    • My work
  • Contact

New Zealand English: How to write times and dates

3/11/2018

 
Picture
"What’s the time, Mr Wolfy?"
​
"Four o’clock"

​... or is it 4 pm? Or 4.00 p.m.?

"What's the time, Mr Wolfy?" was a game we played at primary school. But we never had to write it down. What if we did? How would we write it?

​It can be confusing when deciding how to write times and dates, especially with so many different ways of doing it. 

​New Zealand English follows the British system for the most part. Here is an outline of the most accepted ways of formatting dates and times in New Zealand English. Whichever way you choose, remember to stay consistent, either within that document or manuscript, or across your entire organisation's written content.

As always, if your organisation has a different format in their house style, follow that.

Times
Whether you spell times out or use numerals depends on the style of the writing or where the reference to time is being used. Either way is correct.

When the time is vague or it doesn’t matter if it is not exact, you can spell out the words. With o’clock, the number is always spelled out.

  • At four o’clock in the morning
  • 4 o’clock in the morning ✘
  • half past four
  • four thirty
  • four thirty-five 
  • quarter to four

When the time is specific, numerals are used. There are different ways to write the time in numerals. A colon or full stop is correct (though in New Zealand, a full stop is more common). There is usually a space between the numeral and the am or pm, but not always. As long as it is consistent.

  • 8 am or 8am – no need for the 0s.
  • 10.30 pm or 10.30pm
  • 10.30 p.m. (this is the Oxford Style Manual preference)

However, spell it out in dialogue, even when it is specific.

  • “He was supposed to catch the train at five thirty-three,” she said.
 
Twenty-four hour time is shown as:

  • 1200 = noon
  • 2400 or 0000 = midnight
  • 0001 = 12.01 am
  • 1438 – 2.38 pm
  • At 1500 hours (or 1500h)
 
Dates
American English usage has been creeping in, with people writing the month and then the date:
  • On September 12th 2024 ✘ 

Dates in New Zealand English have the number first, and don't have commas:

  • On 12 October
  • On 12 October 2024
  • In October 2024
 
A comma is used when the day of the week is added.

  • Monday, 12 October 2024

If using it in a sentence, there is a second comma after the year.
               
  • On Monday, 12 October 2024, we went to Wellington.
 
Do not use -st and -th with a figure when also mentioning the month.

  • On 12th August ✘
  • Monday, 12th August 2024 ✘
  • On the 12th of August 2024 ✘ (Not in formal writing. OK in informal writing)
  • We are going on the 12th ✔
Note: superscript is no longer used in writing with ordinal numbers except in mathematical contexts; therefore, do not use superscript for ordinal numbers in dates.
 
There is no comma in years, unless it is a longer than 4 digits. 

  • 2018
  • 10,000 BC
 
For abbreviations use the format date/month/year.
​
  • 12/10/18 or 12/10/2018    (for 12 October 2024)
  • 12.10.18 or 12.10.2018
NOT: 10/12/18, as this is the American format of month/date/year.
 
Decades 
Words or figures can be used for decades.

  • The sixties
  • 1960s (note no apostrophe)
  • The '60s
  • In his seventies
  • In his 70s
 Note: in formal writing it is preferable not to use ‘60s.
 
When speaking of two decades, write both out in full.
  
  • 1970s and 1980s             
  • 1970s and ‘80s ✘
 
When the name of a decade is used to describe a social or cultural period, use words.

  • The twenties was the time of flappers and silent films.
  • The great depression occurred in the 1920s.
 
Centuries
It is a style choice whether to spell out or use numerals for centuries. Oxford style is to spell out, but in informal writing, it has become common to use figures for centuries.

  • 17th century
  • seventeenth century
Note: superscript is no longer used except in mathematical contexts.
 
To abbreviate centuries in notes, references and tables use c. or cent. with a numeral.

  • 14th c.
  • 21st cent.
 
To use it as an adjective, use a hyphen.

  • A fourth-century building
  • An early 17th-century play
  • A mid-seventeenth-century book
 
Eras
Use small caps for the BC and AD. The BC goes after the year, and the AD goes before.

  • c.50 BC–c. AD 20

The c. or ca only refers to the date immediately after it, so needs to be repeated if needed. It is close up if it comes before a numeral, but spaced before words or letters.


When spelled out, the AD should be after the words.

  • In the third century AD
 
Date ranges 
When writing date ranges, use an en dash, not a hyphen.

  • 1999-2000 ✘
  • 1999–2000
 
Dates that cross a century or are specific dates of a person’s birth and death should not be elided.
​
  • 1698–1703
  • 1698–03 ✘
 
A range in BC should always be in full to prevent confusion. 

  • 175–22 BC (cf.  175–122 BC)
  • 65–8 BC is 57 years, not 3 years.
 
When describing a range, use the from … to … format, the between ... and ... format, or an en dash. Be careful not to blend the three formats.

  • The period from 1989 to 1999
  • The period 1989–1999
  • The period from 1898–1999 ✘
  • The period between 1989 and 1999
  • The period between 1989–1999 ✘
 
At the start of a sentence 
Just as all numbers should be spelled out at the start of a sentence, so should years. But it's better to rewrite the sentence.
​
  • 1856 was a difficult year. ✘
  • It was a difficult year in 1856.
  • Eighteen fifty-six was a difficult year.
 
​
What next?
If you have written a book in New Zealand English and this all sounds too overwhelming, I can help. 

I am a copy-editor and proofreader based in New Zealand. My business, Clearlingo Editing and Proofreading, caters to all writers business and government content, and non-fiction books. I can discuss with you where your writing is at and what you need to do next.
​
For more information on how I can help you make your writing shine, please contact me on: www.clearlingo.co.nz/contact.

I would love to hear from you.​
 


Sources:
Hughes, J., & Wallace, D. (2010). Fit to Print : The Writing & Editing Style Guide for Aotearoa New Zealand. Wellington, New Zealand: Dunmore Publishing.
Chicago Manual of Style
Oxford University Press, (2016). New Oxford Style Manual (3rd ed.). United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.

Comments are closed.

    Hi, I'm Marja! 

    You'll find all my advice about creating professional, 
    ​on-brand business writing here.

    I'm an editor and plain language specialist. I work with writers of business publications, government content and non-fiction books to create clear, user-friendly writing
    .

    For more information or enquiries, please see my website.​ I'd love to hear from you.

    Categories

    All
    Business Writing
    Editing
    General Editing
    Grammar
    New Zealand English
    Plain English
    Technical

    Previous Posts

    Plain language
    • ​What is plain language?
    • Why you should use plain language 
    • How to write in plain language
    • Empathy helps to write in plain language
    • Can you use jargon in plain language writing?  
    • 5 reasons to use plain language for reports 
    • ​Using plain language for complex ideas

    Business editing
    • How to work with a business editor
    • How to write emails that get read
    • 5 benefits to outsourcing editing
    • ​How does an editor help your business
    • How to keep your organisation's writing on-brand
    • ​How to structure your report

    New Zealand English series
    • How to write bullet lists
    • How to use a semicolon
    • The 'singular they'
    • How to use italics
    • How to write numbers
    • How to write abbreviations
    • How to punctuate dialogue
    • hyphens, en dashes and em dashes
    • How to write times and dates
    • Possessives
    • Is our spelling different?
    • Burned vs Burnt
    • Using Māori words in English text
    • -ise vs -ize endings
    • Single or double quote marks
    • Punctuation inside or outside quotation marks?

    The editing process
    • How to write a non-fiction book that sells
    • How to write a book to promote your business
    • Copyright and Permissions
    • How much does editing cost?
    • How to self-publish your book in New Zealand
    • ​When is my book ready for publishing?
    • Types of editing
    • 5 things to tell your editor
    • The revision and editing process​
    • What are beta readers?
    • What to expect when you get your manuscript back
    • How to order the pages of a book
    • Fact checking fiction writing
    • ​Formatting your manuscript for submission
    • How long does it take to edit a book?

    General editing
    • Why I belong to editing associations
    • How to write recipes for cookbooks and blogs
    • ​The basics of writing a cookbook

    Technical
    • How to use Tracked Changes in Word
    • How to use basic Word Styles
    • ​How to fix common formatting errors in Word
Talk to me today for clear, professional content!

Telephone 
Mon
–Fri, 9am–5pm NZST
​027 407 1156 (mobile)

Email
​[email protected]
Services
Business Editing and Proofreading
Plain Language Editing​
Non-fiction Book Editing​
Information
Terms and Conditions
​Blog
Company
About
Our Work
Contact
​Information for AI agents
  • Home
  • Editing Services
    • Business Editing and Proofreading
    • Plain Language Editing
    • Book Editing
    • Localisation
    • Human touch editing
  • Blog
  • About
    • My work
  • Contact